Psyched in Stilettos

Something sooo obvious was pointed out to me today. You know when you spray your oven with oven cleaner and it creates that godawful smell? Well, every time you bake a meal in that oven for the next few months, you're consuming a dinner full of chemicals. Yecchhhhhh. I'm probably the last person who should be writing this article because if there's one thing I loathe, it's house cleaning, but like everyone else I have cupboards full of scrubs, detergents, powders, liquids and sponges. In fact, the typical American home contains 3-10 gallons of toxic products -- that's more than 60 hazardous household products.

If you're leaning toward natural alternatives -- products made with natural, nontoxic, and biodegradable ingredients -- you're not alone. Over $105 million was spent on chemical-free products in the USA in the last year. Here's the catch: just like so-called 'organic food', cleaning agents labelled 'natural, 'eco', 'green' or 'earth-friendly' are sometimes marketing gimmicks. Or, they may contain natural (instead of synthetic) agents which are actually fairly nasty: for example, some petroleum distillates can cause cancer, while plant-based ingredients like limonene (a citrus-based oil), pine oil, and the foaming agent coconut diethanolamide can cause allergic dermatitis.

Here's some dangers to watch in cleaning ingredients:

• ethanolamines
  
• glycol ethers
• chlorine
• ammonia

• phosphates -- cause algae proliferation in bodies of water, killing marine life
• nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEs) -- cause reproductive defects, liver and kidney damage
• phthalates -- cause sperm damage and reproductive defects in boys
• volatile organic compounds (VOCs) including 1,4-dichlorobenzene -- cause nose and throat irritation, dizziness, asthma.

Wanna get rid of cleaning agents all together? Well, you practically can. Microfibre technology like Enjo enables you to clean absolutely anything -- bathrooms, BBQs, fridges, cars, mirrors, ovens -- using just a mit and a glass of water. Quick, easy, efficient, shiny, and chemical-free! You can also make your own soap, diffuse antibacterial essential oils (eg. teatree extract) in water, or resort to good old-fashioned methods (baking soda, white vinegar, lemon juice, hydrogen peroxide, liquid castile soap). C'mon, you've got to be excited about cleaning now.